"The district is missing the point of accountability"

The Watchdog article (“Changed grades under scrutiny in Sweetwater school district,” June 8) was an eye opener and should be taken very seriously by district administrators. The Castle Park High principal took his eye off the ball 115 times to allow improper and possibly illegal grade changes to be made to student records. He subsequently received a promotion to executive director for high schools in the Sweetwater Union High School District, and a pay raise.

To his credit, he admitted his wrongdoing and accepted full responsibility. To his discredit, it appears he has not guaranteed that things will be made right, and may even be trying to play down yet another major error concerning his oversight of intersession make-up classes.

Four students took two intersession classes that required them to work 24 hours a day for five days straight to complete their required 120 class hours. Experts doubted such was actually done, yet the principal responded that he believed it to be “appropriate.” Such a response begs the question of whether actual intersession class times and resultant grades are a sham.

It seems the district is missing the point of accountability, responsibility, and system integrity. What I see from the article is an effort by a district administrator to sweep problems under the rug, with no punitive action even hinted at by senior district officials. The principal may have job experience and education-related degrees in hand, but it appears that he could be just wrong for the job.

And none of this would have come to light if it weren’t for the U-T Watchdog’s investigative reporting.

Michael Seiler

Bonita

“Please don’t just stop with Ochoa”

Great article! I wish you wouldn’t only focus on Principal Diego Ochoa as the main culprit, however. I personally know him and find him to be a very intelligent and forthcoming individual.

After reading your article, I found the necessity to make the following points.

First: I believe Principal Ochoa is probably one of the few hard working and dedicated people in the Sweetwater School District.

Secondly: I don’t think all blame falls upon him, after all. There are countless horrible, ill-prepared instructors at Castle Park High School (I know this, since I was a 2000 alumni).

Thirdly: This is not the first time CPHS was in a grade-changing scandal. When I played football, coaches and instructors would change grades in order to help students meet academic requirements to play. Unfortunately, the vast majority of those students ended up not even attending college.

Accolades for your article shedding light upon this big problem! But please don’t just stop with Ochoa, for he is only trying to solve a problem he inherited.

Hugo Ivan Salazar

Chula Vista

"Diego Ochoa is the definition of a dedicated, passionate, involved principal”

I am a new graduate of Castle Park High and having closely worked with Principal Ochoa I feel it is my duty to stand up for a man who has time and time again stood up for the students here in Chula Vista. Now, although Principal Ochoa admits to his mistakes in Ashly McGlone’s article, he does clearly justify his intentions and reasons for those grade changes. Principal Ochoa has increased test scores and attendance at a phenomenal rate, genuinely, not just on paper. Ochoa is on the forefront of an educational revolution here in Chula Vista. Results are clearly visible at Castle Park High School with classrooms overflowing with students who engage regularly with the class and will admit that they are academically inclined and not ashamed. Principal Ochoa’s actions are completely justifiable by the wealth of knowledge that has flourished in this low income neighborhood in Chula Vista.